Not offensive, tasteless, crude, dribble, nor does this political satire cereal box on the first African-American candidate shamefully exploit Latino, Black, or Muslim racial stereotypes. I mean, how could have they known better?WASHINGTON — Activists at a conservative political forum snapped up boxes of waffle mix depicting Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama as a racial stereotype on its front and wearing Arab-like headdress on its top flap.
Values Voter Summit organizers cut off sales of Obama Waffles boxes on Saturday, saying they had not realized the boxes displayed "offensive material." The summit and the exhibit hall where the boxes were sold had been open since Thursday afternoon.
The box was meant as political satire, said Mark Whitlock and Bob DeMoss, two writers from Franklin, Tenn., who created the mix. They sold it for $10 a box from a rented booth at the summit sponsored by the lobbying arm of the Family Research Council.
I have to ask: the people who helped create this crap; the Values Voter Summit - exactly what kind of family values are they trying to promote with this? That it's fine to instill racially inappropriate and offensive stereotypes about groups that aren't white to young children?
6 comments:
It's the same family values that makes them support a candidate with a pregnant minor for a daughter.
Republicans fight so hard to make you think they aren't racist. They get mad when you call them racist. Then they pull this shit.
Leprosy Lou dobbs whom amazingly has liberal fans says his wife will love these.
I have to admit, I do think this is pretty funny. While the image of Obama on the front is a caricature, it does not appear to be a racial caricature; the emphasized elements are the ears and the teeth, rather than the lips.
Racial caricature does not always rest only in the artistic details, but also in the context and in this case in the history of a marketing brand. Aunt Jemima, the parodic reference here, dates back to the late 1800s and has ties to minstrel shows and the whole racially denigratory "mammy" concept.
For all that it may be clever in its executed technicalities, it's not terribly funny and is certainly out of keeping with anyone purporting to promote "family values."
Added from Yahoo News:
Values Voter Summit organizers cut off sales of Obama Waffles boxes on Saturday, saying they had not realized the boxes displayed "offensive material." The summit and the exhibit hall where the boxes were sold had been open since Thursday afternoon.
Yet another case of "not realizing" a whole segment of the populace might be offended until recognizing that the media had caught on, methinks.
Hy there Count
Ralph Nader running a party against the Greens is sick. I used to respect him but now he pulls a Lieberman?
Anyways, wanted to mention CapAm / Micheal started one of those goodbye threads we discused a few months back.
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